Building on Experience: Packaging Design Lessons from Canada for the Lubricant Packaging Industry
Our recent bottle-to-bottle pilot showed that used lubricant containers could be collected, processed, and manufactured into new packaging. The pathway exists. The next question is how to make it work as efficiently as possible as the U.S. builds its own dedicated collection and recycling infrastructure.
RPM eco has been doing this in Canada for years. Through the Used Oil Management Association (UOMA) program, they have developed and refined a dedicated collection and recycling system for lubricant containers at scale. That experience is worth paying attention to as a source of practical insight that the U.S. industry can build on rather than recreate.
One of the clearest takeaways from that experience is that packaging design has a direct impact on how well a recycling system performs. The materials used, the components added, the colors chosen — these decisions, made early in the design process, shape what recyclers can do with a container at the end of its life. Small choices upstream can meaningfully improve material recovery and the quality of recycled resin downstream.
Material consistency is among the clearest lessons from years of operating at scale. Containers made from 100% polyethylene, with caps, handles, and seals following the same principle, move through recycling systems cleanly. Additives like calcium carbonate or mixed materials such as aluminum foils and metal handles introduce complexity that reduces what recyclers can recover. Where mixed materials are unavoidable, designing components for easy separation helps preserve the quality of the stream.
Label and color choices also shape recycling outcomes in ways that are easy to overlook. Labels that cover large portions of a container, use incompatible adhesives, or are made from paper or multi-polymer materials can contaminate the resin during processing. Polyethylene or polypropylene labels paired with water-soluble or easily removable adhesives tend to work best. Color is equally relevant: lighter, neutral pigments give recyclers more flexibility with recovered material, while dark or heavily saturated colors limit what that resin can become next. The broader principle behind both is simplicity. The fewer material types in a container, the easier and more efficient the recovery process is.
The U.S. lubricant packaging industry is at an early but important moment. EPR programs are advancing, and dedicated collection infrastructure is taking shape through initiatives like LPMA. The advantage of building a system now is that the industry does not have to start from scratch. Canada's experience, and RPM eco's in particular, offers a practical reference point for what works at scale.
Translating those lessons into practice requires alignment across the value chain. Brand owners, packaging manufacturers, and recyclers working from shared design principles generate cleaner, more consistent material streams and stronger recycling outcomes for everyone. Packaging design is one of the most accessible places to start, and the knowledge to inform those decisions already exists.
The National Lubricant Container Recycling Coalition or “NLCRC” is an industry-led coalition funded by a committed consortium of value chain stakeholders focused on establishing solutions for recovery and recycling of packaging for petroleum-based and related products utilized in transportation and industrial applications Industry. For more information, visit https://www.nationallcrc.com.